List Price: $149.95
Sale Price: $69.95
Today's Bonus: 53% Off
I purchased this backpack bundle for an upcoming Cruise to the Caribbean with several ports of call. I needed something not too big, but big enough for all my gear and be flexible enough to be a shore excursion pack when I needed it to be.
I received it in good condition, before the delivery estimate, it was shipped promptly and packaged carefully with the other items that were purchased at the same time.
Of course, the first thing I had to do once I got it out of the box was grab my camera gear and laptop accessories and see if I could stuff it to the gills and then see how much room was left if any...
SIZE It is a pretty good sized bag it held my Nikon D90 with several lenses (one of them a 300mm), a couple of flashes, card readers, my camcorder, a small underwater camera, all the extra batteries, chargers and accessories and a laptop, its charger, wireless mouse and all of its goodies. That's a lot of stuff! I was amazed that three bags of stuff went into one backpack!
Now, of course, I didn't pack the kitchen sink or any cinder blocks and I left some of my less used accessories behind, but still, it weighs a ton... But at least I will be able to get it all on board in one bag! I plan on stripping some gear out of it for shore excursions.
POCKETS & ZIPPERS This thing has heavy duty zippers on all sides! I especially like the main lower compartment access on BOTH sides of the bag from the sides where the camera and lenses are stashed. It makes for quick and easy access to the camera and the most used accessories while cradling the rest of them inside the lower compartment, in Velcro dividers. There is access from the back panel for the center of the lower camera compartment as well with a zippered mesh pouch on the flip down access door I used for manuals, lens cleaner pens, etc. The upper compartment has little pouches on the sides inside to stash cables, battery packs, memory cards, etc. The laptop compartment puts your laptop (and notebooks, books, folders) against your back so you don't feel any lumpy camera gear inside the pack and the zippers are sort of a bitch to get to if you don't know where they are GOOD safety/security feature! Once you know where they are, it's easy.
"STASH POCKET" One pocket of note on the upper portion on one side, on the outside, with a Velcro flap, is a simple slip-in pocket it appears to be the PERFECT size for a passport and papers. Making for an easy place to stash your important papers when going through customs. (I wouldn't LEAVE it there while traveling, but it's a good size for a small wallet, cell phone, cigarettes, etc.)
PORTABILITY This bag has several handles on it, making carrying it "not as a backpack" a lot easier. I have used one of the handles on the side to attach gear bags with belt loops for outside storage. The one on top is heavy duty and handles the load I stuffed into it without any strain at all.
STABILITY When stuffed this bag likes to sit upright when you sit it down on the ground which I love. I hate for a pack to fall over because the bottom is shaped like an egg. It seems stable, even though it is sort of top-heavy from all the battery packs I have stuffed in the upper compartment with all the chargers. (that's MY packing job, not their problem...)
TRIPOD BUNDLE The tripod is light, aluminum and comes in its own rain-cover, a sock style case with a drawstring closure. It is a small and light tripod for traveling. It is so light duty I am a little worried about how it will handle a D90 with a big double battery grip, a 2x tele-converter and a 300mm lens... We shall see how it performs but it is sort of what I expected in a "bundle" like this. It will be good for my wife's small point and shoot, so I am more than happy with it. It attaches via a little leg pouch and adjustable snap strap NOT Velcro.
The ONLY thing that I think would make this bag better is some simple sewn in straps or loops for attaching other stuff to. Little straps or loops for Velcro straps to attach sunglasses cases, water bottles, straps for a monopod, etc... Much like I have seen on the "National Geographic" camera bags. Simple loops so you can roll up a windbreaker, over shirt or jacket and Velcro strap it to the loops or something. I will be making a couple of simple modifications to mine to hold things like this.
So far, I am happy with the purchase and my new bag I will have to see how it performs when we take the trip! It is exactly what I expected, it seems heavy duty enough and I look forward to using it. I stuffed it to the gills and there isn't much room left, but it sure swallowed an awful lot more than I expected! Thus allowing me to take it all in ONE bag!
Thanks to Butterfly Photo for being so prompt!
MP
*** AFTER TRIP UPDATE ***
We used this for our "shore excursion pack" it rocked! We stuffed a lot of duty free shopping stuff inside of it and had lots of room left over for cameras, snorkel and mask and other sundry items. It is a little big compared to the little bags other folks walked off of the cruise ship with but we weren't walking back to the boat with two arms loaded with bags either! We LOVED how this thing has all sorts of little nooks and crannies, zippered pouches and easy access to the inside via the side mounted zipper openings! The little passport pouch was good too! We used it for the GPS and the passports at every port. This pack made our trip easier!
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